|
Officials shoot down range moratorium
By Derek Hodges
Jackson County's commissioners took aim at a proposed moratorium on shooting ranges in the county Dec. 14, saying such regulation is no longer necessary.
Caney Fork resident Sam Matthews, who wasn't at the December meeting, proposed the moratorium in November.
Concern about the impact of building a shooting range in the county because of the effect such a facility could have on the surrounding community and the environment prompted his request for a moratorium, he said.
Of particular concern to Matthews were rumors that the owners of Smoke Rise Field Club in Cashiers were considering land on Caney Fork as a site for a new shooting range.
Commissioner Eddie Madden said he had discussed the possibility of a new shooting range in the county with the owners of Smoke Rise, which will soon be closing.
The range's owners have ruled out possible relocation sites in Jackson County and will most likely relocate elsewhere, Madden said.
Commissioners unanimously voted against the moratorium on condition the county's planning board discuss regulations for possible future ranges.
After hearing of the outcome, Matthews said he wasn't satisfied with the reasoning used to defeat his proposal.
"I don't know what they're basing that on," Matthews said. "(The field club owners) are still looking for somewhere else to put a range here in the county; they have been for years."
Turning to plans for the restoration of the old county Courthouse, commissioners unanimously voted not to renew Kudzu Players' lease when it expires in October 2006.
Comissioners' Chairman Stacy Buchanan initiated the discussion by asking fellow commissioners to consider whether they believe Kudzu Players' lease of the historic building should be extended past its current expiration.
"I would recommend that we not extend that contract," said Commissioner Roberta Crawford, who made a motion to that effect.
Commissioners discussed with county Manager Ken Westmoreland the fire marshal's findings from inspecting the building, which call for significant changes to bring the facility to fire safety standards.
Commissioners decided to send a letter to Kudzu directing them to do what is necessary to bring the building to code.
"They'll probably have to move some of their set around," Westmoreland said.
When she made the motion, Crawford included a stipulation that if Kudzu finds a new home sooner than the end of their lease the commissioners would "appreciate it if (Kudzu) would go ahead and move."
Upon questioning from Commissioner Brian McMahan, Westmoreland told commissioners that work on the old Courthouse's exterior is scheduled to be completed by the end of December.
Commissioners voted to award a $15,000 grant to the town of Dillsboro for a park at the Monteith property. The funds will come from the $20,000 the county annually allocates to such grants for community development, leaving $5,000 to be spent, Buchanan said.
In other business, Jay Coward, attorney for Patrick and Jeannie McGuire, requested commissioners approve a land swap between the McGuires and the county.
The McGuires bought 83 acres of a 450-acre tract in 2000 that Tom and Phil Stovall had put up as collateral for loans they received from Jackson County, the Town of Sylva and Macon Bank in 1999. The Stovalls took out the loan to expand Sylva's Southern Lumber Co.; the town and county agreed to release 15 of the 83 acres from the lien in 2000.
Since then, the McGuires have begun construction of a home on the property, Coward said. The site they picked is on the unencumbered property, but is very close to property still under the lien, Coward said.
The McGuires would like to trade 7 acres of the unencumbered land for 7 acres still under lien, since the surveyor who drew up the original property lines made a mistake in placing the boundaries, Coward said.
Commissioner Madden, a Cashiers real estate agent, said he would like to walk the property lines to see if he believes the trade would be for land of an equal value.
"The land is of equal value, in my opinion," Coward said.
An appraiser could be hired, but that would "cost a lot of money," Coward said.
Commissioners decided to delay a vote until Madden evaluates the property.
"I'm going to rely on Eddie on this one," Buchanan said.
|
